Coming into the NBA, each athlete has a different goal and definition of being successful in the league. But all of them can agree on the fact that winning an NBA Championship is a common goal that they share. Unfortunately, despite their best efforts, some players have to live with the fact that they failed to win a title.
NBA Hall of Famer and TNT analyst Charles Barkley definitely falls in that category. Chuck was one of the better players of his era and won several accolades throughout his career.
The one thing that he couldn’t win was an NBA Championship. So sometimes, it feels like Chuck takes out that anger by downplaying the legacy of other NBA stars. The most recent example is his ongoing feud with the Brooklyn Nets superstar Kevin Durant.
The two have exchanged back-and-forth jabs over the last few days about the fact that Durant was a bus rider during his stint with the Golden State Warriors. NBA analyst Stephen A. Smith has now stepped in to give his two cents on the matter.
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“I don’t have a problem with Barkley’s comments and I don’t have a problem with Kevin Durant clapping back at him. I think it’s perfectly within Kevin Durant’s right to clap back. He is a two-time champion. He is a two-time NBA Finals MVP. I think when healthy, he is the greatest player on the planet. And the fact of the matter is that he has more hardware on his resume than Charles Barkley does, that’s just a fact. But, when he brings up the cash, it’s not about the cash. So, why bring that up? I don’t understand that.
“I don’t think he should have brought up the money in regards to that, but I do think that he should have clapped back. But I also think that it is important to understand what Charles Barkley was trying to say, because Barkley wasn’t lying about what people will say.”
As Smith explained, both of them are right in their own way. But bringing money into the argument doesn’t seem fair, to be honest.
Since the two players played in different eras, where the paygrade of players varies, it shouldn’t even be in this debate. Anyway, it feels like this clash between Chuck and KD is far from over, and, as it turns out, it is only getting worse.
